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Gem Recipes To Get The Most Out Of Your (ARCANE) Weapons [Made by Sljm8D]

Ahoy there! Hot on the heels of my recent research into Blood Gems, I felt the need to finally sit down and write a guide specifically for gemming out your weapons, if you're an Arcane build. In some ways, Physical builds have it easy because they can just farm 27.2 gems from watchers and call it good. Meanwhile Arcane builds are "stuck" with "worse" gems that have secondary effects... At least, that's what the scrubs will tell you.

I'm here to tell you these secondary-effect gems can, under the right circumstances, outperform even those rare Elemental 27.2 gems.

Arcanists have also gotten several very interesting new weapons in the DLC since I wrote The Arcanist Guide. Combined with my new insight into gem bonuses and farming methods, it's high time for an update. I hope to have Arcanist 2.0 done very soon, but until then it made sense to release a standalone guide for my fellow redditors to use in the meantime.

The recipes here are merely suggestions, based on my current opinions. This is also not an exhaustive list, there are merely the recipes I'd use. If you come up with a recipe of your own, please share!

Conversion Weapons is a term I've been using to describe any purely physical weapon that's been converted into Elemental using Blood Gems. Note that while mixed-elemental Blood Gems exist, they don't always work... a Fire gem with Flat Arcane will make the weapon Arcane (thus ignoring the Fire aspect entirely), a Bolt gem with Flat Fire will make the weapon Fire...

There's a priority list:
Arcane > Fire > Bolt > Physical

If an attribute of a higher priority exists on the gem (whether Flat or Percentage), the weapon will be converted to that type and the lower-priority attributes won't take effect. Thus, Physical gems with Flat Element of any kind are largely useless for purely physical weapons, though they can be used on hybrid weapons.

For the most part, I think there are enough dedicated Arcane weapons now that Conversion weapons aren't needed, although Serrated Fire weapons with Atk vs Beasts are incredibly powerful. That being said, if there's a Conversion weapon you really like, by all means go for it!

My Favorite Recipes

I play mostly PvE, so for the most part I focus on that content when I'm thinking of ideas. It's my opinion that Arcane builds have the most diversity in terms of weapon choice, so please don't take this as an exhaustive list. These are just my favorites, tried and true.

Roast Beast

Any Serrated weapon. Saw Cleaver (normal mode) is my favorite and usually my starting weapon, but Saw Spear (both modes), Threaded Cane (trick mode), Beast Cutter (both modes), and Whirligig Saw (trick mode) all work wonderfully. Note that you could do exactly the same thing for Bolt & Kin Up, with any weapon you like, simply use Abhorrent Beast/Loran Darkbeast zgv6ezxi Layer 3/4 for the waning instead of Watchdog. I don't see a point in making an Arcane Conversion weapon when Moonlight, Wheel, and Kos Parasite exist, but see Split PvP Soup recipe if you're really into it.

Waning x1
Up to 24.8% Fire, 6% Atk vs Beasts from Watchdog of the Old Lords boss in Loran758v8txa Layer 3 boss (Fire primary is guaranteed)

Up to 21% Fire, 10.5% Atk vs Beasts from Red-Aura Madman in Loran9hdhpcqv Layer 1 main area, immediately after lamp
Technically this should out-perform the Abyssal against Beasts, but it's actually harder to farm if you can believe it. Also, your damage against everything else will suffer.

Holy Moonlight Pie Sword

Basic version, no reason not to. This is tied for #1 best Arcane-type weapon that doesn't require a specific Rune to even function, in my opinion. Wheel is the other contender. These two weapons together compliment each-other well, so don't think you have to pick just one!

2x Radial, 1x Triangle

Radial x2
Up to 19.3% All Atk, 5.4% Atk vs Open Foes from Gargoyles in Pthumeru8usmn4r2 Layer 2 main area, go up the round elevator, through the room with the cannon

Tiramisu Logarius' Wheel

Uncanny version. Technically speaking you can run this weapon with Nourishing gems and use the entire moveset (just use the recipe for Moonlight), or you can do what I do and dump all your eggs into the multi-hit basket. Focus on Trick Mode, use mostly dodge/sprint R1, R2 combos, backstep R2, and maybe the Jump attack. The damage and stagger potential are ridiculous, and it's a highly mobile weapon when you understand it.

2x Radial, 1x Triangle

Radial x2
Up to 9.1% Physical, +67.5 Arcane from Brainsuckers in Pthumeru8y2wes5u Layer 1 main area, to the right of the stairs in the lever room

Triangle x1
Up to 9.8% Physical/Arcane, +72.5 Arcane from Brainsucker boss in Iszhuy83p9r Layer 1 boss (Arcane primary is uncommon, but possible)
I'd use Arcane primary if your Strength is below 50, but there's not a huge difference most of the time

Fried Won-Tonitrus

Lost version. In my opinion this is potentially more powerful than any Bolt Conversion against Kin specifically, once you understand how to use it. Transform attacks are your friend! Note that the basic/uncanny version with 2 Nourishing Open Foes Radials and a Nourishing Flat Bolt Waning/Triangle could be the PvP version of this. If you get lucky and drop an off-shape Open Foes gem from Gargoyles, even better!

1x Radial, 1x Triangle, 1x Waning

Radial x1
Up to 19.3% All Atk, 5.4% Atk vs Open Foes from Gargoyles in Pthumeru8usmn4r2 Layer 2 main area, go up the round elevator, through the room with the cannon

Waning & Triangle x1 each
Up to 21.5% All Atk, 5.2% Atk vs Kin from Amygdala in Isz/Loran. This secondary effect is less common in Isz, but it does exist.ghgvhb2d Isz Layer 3 bossske4igwv Loran Layer 3 boss

Boom Hammer 'n Mashed Potatoes

Basic version. This isn't so much a weapon designed for beasts as it is simply a great Fire weapon with a pretty unique playstyle. I'd probably still keep a Roast Beast on hand for emergencies, but this weapon is damn good on beasts and non-beasts alike. Unlike many Nourishing-related setups I use, I prefer Charge Atk Up on this one... When you've used the primed Charge Attack you'll see why. If you really want to use this against Beasts specifically, you can use the above Tonitrus recipe with "Beast" instead of "Kin". Simple?

2x Radial, 1x Waning

Radial x2
Up to 19.3% All Atk, 5.4% Charge Atk from Gargoyles in Pthumeru8usmn4r2 Layer 2 main area, go up the round elevator, through the room with the cannon

Kos Parasite Eve Dinner

Uncanny version. This is a really fun weapon to use if you've equipped the Milkweed Oath Rune, which is the only way you can do anything but lame punches. The only reason I prefer Moonlight and Wheel as my Arcane-type weapons is this fact. However, ayy lmao once you put that rune on all hell breaks loose. Watch some videos of the moveset, it's hilarious. Generally speaking this weapon is the proof that AR is a lie, most of the multipliers are upwards of 200%, which makes up for the low displayed AR, eh? The exception to this is a pretty big one: The Trick mode L2 explosion. This thing has a couple of small hits leading into a big one, and it therefore benefits a lot from Flat Arcane... For the rest of the moveset, though, decent Arcane percentage gems will outpace Flat Arcane of similar quality. This is the recipe I settled on, but you could also gem it like Wheel, or with Ebrietas/Bone Ash Arcane gems (see Split PvP Soup). I think Nourishing gems with Open Foes are really neat, what with being so easy to farm in huge quantities and boosting Visceral damage (somewhat). Shout out to u/poopitymcpants for the inspiration to give percentage gems a second look.

2x Radial, 1x Triangle

Radial x2
Up to 19.3% All Atk, 5.4% Atk vs Open Foes from Gargoyles in Pthumeru8usmn4r2 Layer 2 main area, go up the round elevator, through the room with the cannon
These end up better on counter-hits, which this weapon is surprisingly good at. Also, bonus Visceral damage, so use that Augur of Ebrietas, slug person!

Split PvP Soup

Any Conversion Weapon. For the most part, the dedicated Arcane weapons I listed above are the best in my opinion, but if you're really wanting a Conversion weapon for PvP, using 2 Nourishing gems with Atk vs Open Foes or Charge Atk Up, which are the best multipliers we can get for PvP, will give any Conversion weapon more potential in these circumstances than Elemental Radials (and they're probably easier to farm). They also increase Visceral damage while Elemental Radials do not, and this can be important in PvP. Gems within each shape are listed roughly in order of effectiveness, but it sometimes depends on the weapon. Note that you still need 1 Elemental gem to convert the weapon, so keep that in mind.

2x Radial slots, and either 1x Triangle or 1x Waning slot

Radial x2
Up to 19.3% All Atk, 5.4% Atk vs Open Foes or Charge Atk from Gargoyles in Pthumeru8usmn4r2 Layer 2 main area, go up the round elevator, through the room with the cannon
These are more powerful on a counter-hit/charge atk than any Arcane or Bolt Radials we have access to
These will also increase Visceral Attacks unlike Elemental gems

Up to 24.8% Fire, 6% Atk vs Open Foes or Charge Atk from Watchdog in Pthumeru7vvid666 Layer 3 boss (Fire primary is guaranteed)
These are great, but they don't boost Visceral damage

Up to 23.1% Fire/Bolt/Arcane, +14 Fire/Bolt/Arcane from Bone Ash Hunter in Iszcb7jig9p Layer 1 main area, vulnerable to sneak attack
Note that these give less total damage on counter-hits/charge atks than the appropriate Nourishings, and lower Viscerals. You've been warned

Fire/Bolt/Arcane Triangle x1
Up to 27.2% Arcane from Merciless Watchers boss in Iszw59u9ugr Layer 1 boss (Arcane is somewhat uncommon, but possible)
Note that for some weapons these can be the best option, but not always. I recommend trying out the other options below as well.

Arcane Triangle x1
Up to 24.8% Arcane, +15 Arcane from Ebrietas boss in Iszns9pen64 Layer 3 boss (Arcane primary is guaranteed)
This will give you more value on high-percentage attacks and counter-hits

Up to 9.8% Arcane, +72.5 Arcane from Brainsucker boss in Iszhuy83p9r Layer 1 boss (Arcane primary is uncommon, but possible)

Fire Waning x1
Up to 24.8% Fire, +15 Fire from Watchdog of the Old Lords boss in Loran758v8txa Layer 3 boss (Fire primary is guaranteed)
This will give you more value on high-percentage attacks and counter-hits

Up to 21% Fire, +31.5 Fire from Red-Aura Madman in Loran9hdhpcqv Layer 1 main area, immediately after lamp

Up to 24.8% Bolt, +15 Bolt from Loran Darkbeast in Loranazsysju9 Layer 3 boss or zgv6ezxi Layer 4 boss (Bolt primary is guaranteed)
This will give you more value on high-percentage attacks and counter-hits

Up to 21% Bolt, +31.5 Bolt from Red-Aura Madman in Loran9hdhpcqv Layer 1 main area, immediately after lamp